When it Rains, Parked Auto-Rickshaw Comes Handy for Stray Dogs?
Mangaluru: Why does this auto-rickshaw smell like dogs and dog pee? Some of you may ask this question to yourselves or ask the auto-rickshaw driver. But anyway, to all you customers taking a ride on this auto-rickshaw, this report will reveal the answer! Dog lovers who hire this auto may not mind the brunt of the stench, but others will surely curse the driver throughout the journey, till they reach their destination. When it rains, human beings will open their umbrella, or wear raincoats or if they don’t have these two, they will run and take cover inside a building or a mall. Similarly is the case with stray dogs- since they are not able to make use of umbrellas or raincoats, their only option when it rains is to run and take shelter under a parked bus or any other vehicle, or a bus-shelter- and in this case, Team Mangalorean had glimpse of stray dogs taking shelter inside a parked auto-rickshaw, located near a house in Malli layout near Kavoor-Mangaluru.
When Mangaluru City has experienced torrential rainfall a few weeks ago and was totally flooded in many parts of the City, it was sad to note that stray animals, including dogs, were struggling to find a shelter, wading through the knee-high stranded water. While the waterlogging and flooding of drains are some of the major problems for people, it is the worst season for strays. Thanks to some good Samaritans, who come forward and pick these stray dogs and provide them shelter from pouring rains and floods. Rains bring with it much needed relief after months of the discomforting heat of the summer season. While most of us are enjoying the pleasantness of the current weather, the plight of stray animals is least of anyone’s concern.
One young student, Susan of St Aloysius College-Mangaluru who volunteered herself in providing shelter to a few stray dogs in the Kankanady Pumpwell area, speaking to Team Mangalorean said, “Extending a helping hand to strays is like giving back something to the society”. She asks, “How can we let stray dogs and puppies suffer in the rains?” She goes on to add, “They keep searching for shelters in this season and most of them hide inside cars and buses to escape the rains, which is very dangerous for them. Considering all these facts, I decided to open my home for 7 stray dogs during the recent floods in Mangaluru. Since I have a front yard, these pups and their moms stayed safe at my place for three days. I kept checking on them at regular intervals and when I went to college I also instructed my domestic help to put food for them and take care of them. It felt good to see them in a safe environment.”
Stray animals not only struggle to find a safe place to hide from the rains, they also find it difficult to scavenge for food. Since Mangaluru gets badly affected during rains, and while flooding and waterlogging is a common feature this season, the stray animals suffer the most. There are chances due to rains, many stray animals, especially puppies get killed simply because they couldn’t find food and shelter. Susan also said that two of her friends had also picked and adopted five stray puppies of country origin in the Kavoor/MG Road during the heavy rains and flooding, and they gave them medicine and decked all of them with colourful bows and sent their pictures across WhatsApp. In just a few days, two of the puppies got adopted and my friends are hoping that the rest find safe homes too, added Susan.
Thanks to the youngsters like Susan, many stray animals have found temporary shelters for the rains where they are also fed. It’s nice to note that some of the city youngsters are going the extra mile to take care of the stray animals so that these furry friends can find temporary homes during monsoon time. And that Mangaluru will be seeing more heavy rains in the future days, and some streets could be flooded too, Team Mangalorean requests our readers to be Good Samaritans in providing shelter for these four-legged furry “Man’s Best Friends”, at least during the monsoon season. If not these stray dogs have to bear the brunt of the monsoon by running helter-skelter to find a shelter, just like these bunch of dogs who found a parked auto-rickshaw?